


A Match and an Iceberg

by GhostZonePrince



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: F/M, M/M, Pompous Pep, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-05
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-19 02:34:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29867814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GhostZonePrince/pseuds/GhostZonePrince
Summary: Danny finds out that Ghosts have soulmate marks, and he hopes more than anything that Vlad Masters is his one and only.
Relationships: Danny Fenton/Vlad Masters, Ember McLain/Skulker
Comments: 8
Kudos: 63
Collections: Pompous Pep Discord - Our Fanfics





	A Match and an Iceberg

“Ghosts,” Danny paused, still trying to wrap his head around what Clockwork had just said. “Have soulmates?”

The thought shocked Danny. Ghosts were dead, what would they need soulmates for? Unless soulmates were there to stop the ghosts from being lonely for eternity. The thought of having someone there for you for the rest of your existence was nice, but even Danny found it unrealistic. After all, how could someone like him be with someone forever if he wasn’t even able to confess his feelings when he had them?

“Yes.” Clockwork pinched the bridge of his nose, obviously irritated that the younger ghost wasn’t getting the picture. “And there will be a mark on your body to show a rough idea on who it is.”

“Well most of my body is covered in a jumpsuit, so I’ll get right on that.” What was the point in Clockwork telling him something that he’d never be able to see? Not that he was sure he believed in the whole soulmate mark thing anyways, but Clockwork never lied. He never lied but he did avoid telling the full truth periodically, and that was where Danny’s doubt came from.

It wouldn’t have surprised him if it was Clockwork's idea of being a wingman and getting Danny to confess. 

“Daniel, have you ever tried to change your ghost forms clothing?” The Time Ghost knew everything, so he knew that Danny hadn’t done so. He didn’t think it was possible, but considering how certain ghosts had changed their outfits or their entire form before there might have been hope. It wasn’t something Danny needed to do, so he hadn’t tried it out. 

So Danny thought of an outfit he would be able to see a majority of his ghostly skin in. Something like what he would wear to the beach, a t-shirt and a pair of shorts. He concentrated on the outfit change, mentally removing his gloves and sleeves to something shorter. He changed his pants into shorts, and soon he felt the room he was in get colder. 

Danny opened his eyes to see Clockworks knowing smirk. That cocky grin let Danny know that Clockwork not only knew he could do it all along, but knew exactly what Danny would see when he looked down.

Danny’s eyes trailed down to his right arm where the soft accents of pink stood against his ghostly pale skin. He inspected it, holding his arm up closer to his face so he could see it clearer. Absentmindedly he brought his fingers up to trace the mark. 

The mark was beautiful, and he wasn’t sure if it really belonged on someone like him.

It was a black, broken matchstick on fire, with smoke billowing down below. The design had a ring around the tip of the match that separated the magenta smoke from the pink fire, almost making Danny think that the match was going through a ghost transformation like he did. It was simple, but nice. 

He wondered how the design on his inner wrist was going to help him find his soulmate. Would it glow when they were near or did it just tell him about his mate? Was it going to be a fire ghost or someone who had died in a fire? Were they burnt out, and that's why there was smoke? Were they possibly a halfa like him and able to switch between forms? There were too many questions running around in his head, and not enough information to answer any of them. 

He stared at it, checking again and again to make sure it was there. He was taken with the almost tattoo, and knew who he wished it paired him with. Even if it wasn’t true, Danny could imagine what it would be like to find a matching tattoo on Vlad’s arm. He imagined that would be enough for him to confess his feelings for the older man, but he doubted his resolve. He’d probably drop the ball and make the other man feel disgusted that he was paired with his former arch rival. 

Danny traced the design again, marvelling at the idea that Vlad could be the one for him. That there was an Ancient Ghost dedicated in making sure they ended up together despite Danny’s cowardice. 

But there was something that bothered Danny. “Why are you telling me about this? Won’t this affect the future where I meet and fall in love with them organically?” 

Clockwork hummed to himself, deciding how much he could say. “You have met them already, but as for falling in love, I believe you both need a little push.”

“Wait, you know who it is?” Danny knew the ghost wouldn’t tell him anything, but he had hoped. After all this time of Danny laminating to his friend about his love for the other halfa he wanted some closure. Something to help him move on. “Who is it?”

“Nice try, Danny, but that is for you to figure out.” The Time Ghost ruffled Danny's hair before grabbing his shoulders and turning him towards the tower’s door. “Now, I do believe you have a training battle with Plasmius.” 

That had been his reason for visiting Clockwork to begin with, for some encouragement that would help him finally confess. Instead Danny was now plagued with the thoughts of Vlad being someone else's soulmate. 

“Shit, what time is it?” Danny patted his sides for his phone which he had promptly forgotten about in the human realm. 

“The right time, now go. Show him how you can change your appearance and maybe he will change out of that vampire costume.” Clockwork pushed Danny forward, and waved his goodbye. “Enjoy yourself, and remember to speak from the heart!”

With those cryptic words Danny was off to the Battlefield. The Battlefield was a place that he and a few of his former enemies used to learn new moves and keep their skills sharp, and considering how Skulker brought a new trap every week it was a good thing Danny went there almost every day.

They trained with each other often enough that Danny considered them friends and he was glad that the truce was holding up. It was thanks to everyone that Danny had become half the ghost he was, jokes aside, and Amityville had never been safer. 

It was at that very battlefield that Danny was supposed to meet Vlad Masters, who by some stroke of fate was late. In his place were Ember and Skulker who sat painting each other's nails. 

“Babe, teal is a good colour on you.” Ember pointed the tiny brush at her boyfriend, who just went along with what she was doing. “Even if this is only your exoskeleton. It works.”

“I’ll keep that in mind for my next upgrade.” The hunter said before looking up to spot Danny flying by. “Look, the brat’s here.”

“Finally!” The woman groaned, putting the brush back into the paint and closing it up. “We’ve been waiting forever for you to show your scrawny little ass here!”

“No Vlad yet?” Danny asked as he floated down to greet the two, ignoring the comment about his ass.

“Not yet.” Skulker shrugged, not caring too much about his former boss. “We were just hoping to get a good fight in and figured you’d show up eventually.”

Danny sat down next to the two, glad that their days of shooting at each other randomly were over with. “Fighting aside, I have a question for you guys.”

That caught the two’s attention. It wasn’t often that Danny asked them anything. They were used to him asking Clockwork or Vlad for any information he needed, and they weren’t about to pass up an opportune moment to mess with the younger ghost.

“I was told that ghosts have soulmates, is that a real thing?” He asked.

Danny expected a few reactions but he didn’t expect Ember and Skulker to laugh. Maybe he did a little bit, a chuckle or light jab at his expense would be normal for the two, but not a full on laughing fit that had them both gripping their stomachs. 

“You, you mean you don’t know?” Ember said between her fits of laughter. “After all this time, you have no idea?”

“And I thought you couldn’t be dumber!” Even Skulker was in on the joke that Danny didn’t understand. “Of course ghosts have soulmates.”

Ember pulled off her glove to reveal a black circle around her forearm with a familiar skull printed clearly on her inner wrist. Skulker’s choker matched it almost exactly. “Skull and I are a match made in death, just like you and that vampire wannabe are. I can’t believe you didn’t know!”

“Vampire wannabe?” Danny repeated. “Wait, vampire wannabe as in Vlad?” 

“Judging from that pretty thing on your wrist, your soulmate has a thing for fire.” Skulker grinned. “And I will bet one of my traps that Plasmius has a similar one with ice.”

Danny couldn’t believe his ears. They actually thought that Vlad was his match? Did Clockwork think the same, is that why he was so urgent in sending Danny to the battlefield? There was no way. Vlad and Danny might have been on good terms, but they weren’t madly in love with each other, or at least Vlad wasn’t madly in love with Danny. 

“I thought that all your fighting was just your version of foreplay.” Skulker commented. “I could have sworn Plasmius was just trying to rile you up whenever he sent me to kick your ass.”

“Woah, there was no foreplay going on!” Danny shook his head, waving his arms as if that would help prove to the other two they were wrong. “He was still in love with my mom and I, well I was a kid!”

“That was then, and this is now.” Ember pointed out. “No one will ever understand you two like each other. Not now, and not in a millennia, so who cares about how many years you have between you? Skully and I have at least three decades between us. Makes no difference to me just like it shouldn’t make a difference to you and your flame.”

As if on cue Vlad zoomed onto the battlefield, making a landing that reminded Danny of the superhero movies he would watch with Vlad on those occasions he stayed over at his place. “Ah, sorry about the wait Little Badger, there were a few things I needed to take care of.”

“Awe, listen to that, he calls him Little Badger!” Ember giggled, her comment riling Danny up more. 

What was wrong with a nickname? Vlad had called him that for years, and at some point it had gone from being an insult to an endearing term. Vlad didn’t mean it as a pet name, Danny was still just a child in his eyes. There was no way he was his soulmate.

“Vlad! Show me your arm!” Danny yelled, cursing at himself as he stomped over to the older halfa who shook there in shock.

“My arm? Daniel, what’s this about?” Vlad questioned, before his eyebrows went up. “Is that a new form? Did you have another portal accident?”

Danny didn’t have time for Vlad to be caring when he was currently going through a crisis. Maybe the older halfa knew that, and that’s why he was worried, but Danny’s thoughts were consumed by the thought that maybe, just maybe, Vlad had a mark on his arm that matched him.

“No, Clockwork told me I could change my ghost form if I wanted to. I just needed to think about changing, now I need you to do the same so I can see your arm!” Danny felt like a puffed up kitten with the way he was demanding things from Vlad, but the older man didn’t seem to mind.

The man sighed as two familiar rings appeared, but instead of transforming back into a human his cape was gone and his long sleeve turned into a mid sleeve. A mid sleeve that showed the green iceberg design on Vlad’s forearm. 

Vlad didn’t say anything, instead he looked at Danny as if expecting something. Danny was ecstatic that his one sided crush wasn’t for nothing, but horrified that Vlad didn’t seem to be excited about it. Had he known all along and decided that Danny wasn’t worth being with him? Was he ashamed of having a soulmate like him? Was his one sided love truly one sided?

“Did Clockwork tell you about the marks as well?” Vlad finally said after what felt like forever. “What they mean?”

Danny nodded. 

“Then I suppose there is no more hiding it.” Vlad ran his fingers through his thick black hair, something he rarely did in his human form. “I thought that it was just a cruel prank played on me by the time master, but now, seeing that on your arm, I know it isn’t.”

“Well, now what?” Danny couldn’t wrap his head around what was going on. Why did Vlad seem so sullen? Was Danny really that bad? 

“I suppose we will try and find someone who can break these marks.” Vlad mumbled, losing himself to his thoughts.

“What?” Danny couldn’t believe his ears. What did he just say? “Why would we do that? Don’t we have these marks for a reason?”

“You want this?” Vlad blinked, confusion spreading across his face. “You want to be paired with me for the rest of eternity knowing what I have done? Me? A man who has caused you more suffering than any other?”

“Hey,” Danny floated up to Vlad’s face and grabbed it, forcing the other halfa to look him in the eyes instead of retreating back like it seemed like he was going to do. “You have never, and will never, make me suffer as much as my grade ten math teacher.” 

Vlad laughed, but the sound was almost sad. “Daniel, I can see the appeal of this soulmate business, but I am not good enough for you. You need someone who can treat you like you deserve.”

Danny couldn’t believe his ears. How had the self important man crumbled in such a few moments, turning into a man who didn’t think himself worthy of a bond that they didn’t have a choice in. 

Danny wanted to hit Vlad as much as he wanted to kiss him. How could he not see how wonderful he had become since their truce? 

“I love you.” The words fell from Danny’s lips before he thought of the consciences. He didn’t stop, forcing the man to listen to what Danny thought of him. “I love how happy you get when the packers win, but I also love how you’ve learned to tame your anger when they lose. I love how determined you are to win in every situation, even when you are bound to lose. I love how you try to stay up with me wherever I stay over despite having woken up at stupid o’clock in the morning for work. I love how you forget to take your glasses off before you fall asleep reading, and have a specific outfit for when you cook.”

Danny took a breath. “I love how you worry over your appearance, even though your ghost core is making you younger. I love how the corners of your eyes crinkle when you genuinely smile at my jokes, and I love how offended you look when I say I want street food. I love how you realized who you were wasn’t who you were meant to be and changed that, even if it took awhile. I love how you try to be a better person despite what has happened to you in the past, and I love you for who you are.”

Vlad looked like he was going to break in Danny’s hands. The strong man was ready to cry, and Danny felt his heart ache. Instead of wiping the tears away Danny leaned forward and kissed the corners of the man’s eyes, catching the tears before they fell. 

“Now if you don’t love me,” Danny was cut off by Vlad grabbing his face and crushing their lips together. Once he realized what was happening Danny kissed back, drowning in the warmth that the other halfa was giving off. 

Vlad’s arms snaked around him, pulling his flush against his body as Vlad confirmed his feelings in the best way he could. Danny knew he was a man of passion, a man whose spirit was defined by the fire within him, and despite being made of ice Danny never wanted to stop. 

Vlad pulled away first, his blue skin tinted with the bright pink of his ectoplasm. “I do, love you that is. I just thought that it made me some disgusting old man, but,”

“But we are ghosts, and we are separate from aging.” Danny whispered. “We will live forever as we are, and when you remember that what is a few years' difference? In another hundred years it won’t even be on our minds.” 

“You’ve thought about this.” Vlad chuckled, relaxing his drip on Danny just enough that he could put his head on the other man's shoulder. 

“I might have gone over a script with Clockwork at some point when trying to figure out how I would confess to you.” Danny said. “Needless to say I didn’t have the confidence to say anything.”

“Until you saw that we were matched.” Vlad finished the end of Danny's sentence. 

“Exactly.” Danny leaned his head against Vlad’s as he basked in their post make out warmth. “Which prompts the question, what do we do now?”

Vlad lifted his head up and Danny saw the familiar sparkle of trouble in the other halfas red eyes. “Well, Daniel, I believe we should have our first date.”

“You know I was craving some Nasty Burgers.” 

“We might live forever but there is a limit to how much I’m willing to risk cardiac arrest for you.” Vlad let go of Danny only to offer his hand for him. “But I suppose this once I could accept it. For you.”

Danny took his hand. “We’re going to go a lot more than once, Fruitloop, and you know it.” 

“If it means that I earn my place as your soulmate, well then so be it.”


End file.
